As you go through this week’s newsletter you will see the life of a school. We have the retirement of a longstanding member, the invite for new members and all the activity in-between.
You can see that the activities and sports are up and moving and Outdoor Pursuits has two trips out this week with more on the way. On Thursday the NTSAA meeting will solidify the sports competition schedule and that will be added to the school calendar so people can plan ahead.
Our community activities will also be starting up soon as we look at what facilities and times are available for those.
Thank you to all parents that have signed into Life and Toddle. We have about 80% of parents on both. Please do sign in as Toddle will be our main communications system with parents and Life will be the system for signing students up for trips including OP and sports.
As both Ben and I are away next weekend the next newsletter will not come out as normal.
Bob Cofer – Head of Campus
Upcoming Events
24-Hr Run
What is the 24 Hour Run?
For those of you who don’t know, the 24 Hour Run is a team and community fundraising event in which as many people as possible with at least one person from each team on the move at all times. Participants can choose to walk, jog, run and even dance on the field (pretty much anything you can think of is allowed, as long as you’re having fun!).
What is the purpose of the 24 Hour Run?
The UWC East Africa 24 Hour Run brings the community together to raise funds for the school’s scholarship fund which offers opportunities for students to do the IB Diploma Programme at UWC East Africa. This year, we are fundraising for the school’s scholarship fund.
In the past years, this fund has been vital to our community since 75% of IB Diploma students of UWCEA receive a scholarship to complete the program, which makes this service event very personal to everyone involved: we want to give back the opportunity we have received. This year, our fundraising goal is a fee for one full academic year of $29,000. We will also have our partners at Shelby-Davis match the money we raised with their ‘Dare to Dream’ grant to help provide the school fees for another student to study and receive their IB Diploma with us.
About fundraising:
We are sending out an online pledge form designed to collect information from individual donors from outside of Tanzania about the amount of money they are willing to donate and the method of payment that works best for them.
Finally, if you want to form a group and participate in the 24 Hour Run, your team should fit the following:
Teams can have a maximum of 12 members.
Each team should aim to fundraise a minimum of 100,000 Tshs for the 24 Hour Run. Exceeding the minimum amount is highly encouraged and appreciated!
All teams must select 1-2 captains to be the primary point of contact.
If you do not have a team, individual registrations are welcome! However, we will be allocating you in a team and you should aim to fundraise a minimum of 20,000 Tshs for the event.
Link to register to participate with your own group or individually:
The REGISTRATION DEADLINE is on Saturday, September 10th by 11:59pm
Farmers’ Market
The Farmers’ Market will return in on Friday September 23rd and is currently planned for 11am to 2pm. We look forward to seeing our vendors returning and our returning and new community members coming by to look and shop.
A Fond Farewell
This Friday was the last day for Rosie Premsingh. It is likely that even if you are not here physically you will have interacted via email with Rosie as she was heavily involved in the student and staff permit process. Rosie started with ISM in 1980 and has been with the school for 42 years working with 10 Directors and countless others in administration. Her presence, colorful dress and institutional memory will be missed. We wish her all the best as she moves on and wish her every happiness in the future as she spends more time with her children and grandchildren.
Ben’s Corner
Experiential learning is an integral and valued part of the UWCEA experience. In a nutshell, Experiential Learning is the process of learning by doing. The fundamental idea being that engaging students in hands-on experiences and reflection allows them to connect classroom learning to real-world situations. At UWCEA, we are fortunate that these opportunities are rich and varied for all our students. In these first couple of weeks, teachers and students have already taken advantage of our unique location and community to enhance learning in and around the classrooms.
Students have visited microstations from Kibosho to the Pangani River as part of Geography field work. There have been recreational and restorative nature walks and hash runs along with outings to the hot springs and waterfalls. Elsewhere, students have explored a wide variety of real-world experiences from car maintenance and budgeting to self-defence, mindfulness and ‘life hacks.’ We have welcomed expert visitors to campus, including Lily Shallom (a Moshi alumna!) from the wonderful Apopo. An inspiring Tanzanian based organisation who train scent detection animals, nicknamed ‘HeroRATs’ and ‘HeroDOGs’, to help to rid the world of landmines and tuberculosis.
At the same time, our rich and diverse extra-curricular programme has started with students and teachers involved in an enormous variety of activities each and every day. Our incomparable OP Programme is up and running. Reefs L1 is completed and M1 Campcraft and Peaks L4 head out this weekend…with lots more to follow over the coming weeks. Auditions for the whole school production start next week and our Service Learning programme also begins in earnest, offering further meaningful and, hopefully, purposeful learning engagements beyond the walls of the classrooms.
Please do reach out if you are able to share a particular passion or expertise that may enhance learning or have suggestions for locations for field trips and excursions. We would love you to be involved.
Ben Morley – Deputy Head of Campus
Diploma News
The D1 students are settling in and it seems like they have been here forever although as they pointed out to me, it is still less than a month. There subject choices are now fairly settled and I will be emailing parents and students with a list over the weekend. From now any changes require a form to be filled in and permission from the parents. As the classes settle down the assessments will start. The style of assessments in Diploma can be different from what many students are used to and so this can cause grades to be lower than expected. Reading questions carefully and becoming familiar with the command terms is important, as is practice.
Clubs and sports started this week, and it is good to see so many DP students participating. There are sports taking place every day after school, these are run by teachers but in many cases, there are students supporting them. There are clubs covering a wide range of interests from knitting to web design. Many are run by teachers but there is an impressive list of student run clubs.
Service will start next week. Students have been asked to choose what they would like to do. We will have students working in the community at local schools or KCMC (the hospital with which the school has a long history of connections), others will work on campus and others will support the reefs trips. Although we make the initial contact these groups are student led and they will be making the plans.
Margaret Brunt – Diploma Coordinator
Link Families – “Ujafamily”
The Ujafamilies are important part of life for our residential students and are a feature of UWCs. Ujafamiles or link families are people from the community who provide a home away from home for our students. For some students it is just someone outside of school to talk to, for others it is a chance to travel and anything in between. The term ujafamily comes from the Swahili term Ujaama meaning togetherness and students have their ujamamas and ujababas along with ujasiblings. The connections made are strong and the experience in other UWCs is they last long past the time in school. Our graduating students tell us how important these links are, and it is always lovely to see the Ujaparents at graduation.
We have many families who have been providing this support for the last few years and we are very grateful for that. We are sure there are others in the community who are willing to help as well. If you are able to help or you know someone who might be please fill in this questionnaire. If you would like more information, please contact me on dp_moshi@uwcea.org.
MYP News
Service as Action is an integral part of the MYP journey. In response to several parent and student queries about the plan for this year, we decided to refresh in this week’s edition of our MYP news.
Service: Making a positive difference in the lives of others and the environment
Action: Learning by doing
Service as Action: Making a positive impact and learning through those actions
Types of MYP Service:
Service Learning Outcomes:
All of the above stems from the curriculum and is carried out as part of the teaching and learning process while documenting the process and outcomes through reflections.
Wednesday afternoons are set aside for pure community service.
Service Groups M1 to M3
Service Groups M4 to M5
Farah Fawaz – MYP Coordinator
Residential Life
For this week’s update I wanted to outline one of our core guiding statements, ‘”A sense of belonging, acceptance and tolerance.”
This is the theme that epitomises our week in residential life as we ease into routine, find our feet within the dorms, and grow a deeper sense and appreciation of our diverse culture and surroundings. What stands out for me as a true highlight this week was our Diploma student led initiative in meeting with our MYP students on Wednesday to discuss how to accept others, how to be mindful of one’s space and what tolerance really is. I was thrilled to hear the positive feedback and engagement within our extended family.
Such a statement rings true daily here and is not limited to our DP or MYP cohort. Even our youngest primary boarders are learning to accept their new home and how to be tolerant of others. To heighten this inclusion, we are beginning to implement our Diploma mentoring programme in the younger years in the form of academic guidance, informal conversations, and games in the weekend with PYP. This will become a steady routine throughout the coming weeks, and I have to extend my gratitude to our Residential Parents, Mentors and D2’s for their care, generosity and compassion they are giving to the students in their care.
As always, the weekend ahead brings more opportunities to explore our wonderful surroundings with a PYP trip to the Uhuru Hostel play area, MYP trip to Materuni Waterfalls and much needed time for our Diploma students to steady themselves with their academic, community projects and numerous clubs, sports and activities.
Our campus is alive with activity and the feel of home for many, is beginning to become a reality.
Simon Johnston – Head of Residential Life
From the Counsellors
Welcome sunny September!
Week 3 of school has already passed, and I think it is safe to say that most students and staff are starting to get an idea of what a school day looks like.
On Monday I had the pleasure of meeting with this year’s Peer Support Group, which is a wonderful group of D1 students who are committed to assisting in creating a more safe and supportive peer-to-peer environment at school.
For parents/guardians near or far, your interest and engagement in your child’s school life in and out of the classroom are essential to support their success academically and overall health and well-being. Knowing that not all children are up for chatting always, I wanted to share a mix of questions that can help you get the conversation going.
Did anything make you smile today?
Tell me one thing you have learned today that you didn’t know this morning?
Has anything been on your mind that you want to talk about?
How would you rate your day out of 10, and why?
What’s one nice thing you did for yourself lately?
Did anyone do anything silly to make you laugh?
If something was troubling you in school, who would you talk to?
Where’s the best place to hang out at recess?
Have any interesting happened to you lately?
What’s the hardest rule to follow at school?
What would make tomorrow more fun than today?
What is something you are looking forward to?
Not only are these questions a great way to connect and learn about your child’s day, but it also helps them reflect on how things are getting on, find the positives, and feel heard if something is troubling them.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding your child’s social & emotional well-being, please reach out! I am here to help!
It has been a full week for UWCEA Outdoor Pursuits Program, with multiple programs setting off this weekend, we have been busy! We are so excited for Middle Years students who will be heading out to Meru Forest for their Camp craft weekend. Campcraft is design to equip students for outdoor living and for most of M1’s this will be their first outdoor camping experience. Just above the M1’s campsite our Level 4 Peaks hikers will be climbing Meru Mountain’s Socialist peak, the second highest peak in Tanzania. We wish our adventurers a good trip.
And speaking of good trips, here is a student report of the Reef trip that took place last weekend:
“New year, new coordination, new faces – yet the level of enjoyment seems to have stayed the same! This year’s Reefs Level 1 trip has surely been a spectacular opening to the new OP season. Waking up to the singing of tropical birds to watch the sunrise at the shore of the Indian ocean, taking trips around rock pools at low tide and gazing at the creatures you’ve only seen on the pages of encyclopedias before, stargazing under the picture-perfect Milky Way and to the sound of ocean tides, snorkeling through mangroves, and seeing real coral reefs – so many memories were made during the trip! However, as the legendary quote about Reefs states, ‘This is not a beach holiday’, and we surely felt that as we were cutting fruit and making oatmeal for breakfast, doing real exercise while battling with air pressure in an attempt to inflate a paddleboard, climbing through a slippery mangrove labyrinth, or doing dishes for a countless time. Yet, with the physical exhaustion comes the freshness of mind as the healthy combination of learning, self-discipline, collaboration and fun seems to be working wonders. I am grateful both for the experience and to the people I had pleasure to go through it with, and I am more than sure that, in this opinion, I am not the only one from the team.”
Maria – UWCEA D2 Student
See you on the next adventure! Baden Dowie
Sustainability
Starting the year off in a sustainable way!
As promised, this year a group of young minds from M3-D2 alongside some teachers and parents the sustainability committee has been successfully established. At the beginning of this week, during a presentation in the school assembly we introduced the team and highlighted the importance of being a sustainable school that looks after the environment.
The sustainability committee is broken down into three main parts, the first being the plastics and waste management group. This group is responsible for the lovely recycling bins that have been placed all around campus and are planning on creating a compost that will allow us to reduce our school’s food waste. The second group is the carbon footprint group which will be collecting data on the amount of water and electricity usage as well as the campus’s overall carbon footprint, to figure out how much we contribute to the global crisis of climate change. Finally, the water and energy group will be looking into creating a drip irrigation system in the community garden. They are also looking at ways of harvesting rainwater to reduce groundwater use.
We encourage you to make use of the new recycling bins around the school and to throw away any plastic or paper material as it will help both us and you.
“Change starts small, the more effort we put in, the more fruit us and our planet shall reap thereof ” – Sustainability committee
Sports Update
Dear all,
Welcome to the first week of the after-school program. The clubs were full of excitement and engagement. The after-school program is designed to incorporate hands-on activities and connect with students’ interests and experiences through a wide range of clubs led by teachers, parents and students. Clubs intend to build on and enhance student learning outside class time. We encourage all students to attend clubs to learn more about themselves and develop new skills. Next week will be the last week for students to make any changes to their clubs. Here are some pictures from our first week.
Mostafa Rihan – Sports & Activities Coordinator
Leopardsharks Swim Club
A warm welcome to all new parents and students to UWC East Africa – Moshi Campus!
We are a fun swim club offering swimming training sessions to competent swimmers of all ages at the Moshi Campus. If you train with us, you will not only become better in inter-school/house competitions but, as a swim-club member you can go to national meets in Mwanza, Dar es Salaam and other places. In the last few years, our very own swimmers have even been selected to swim for the Tanzania National Team in Kenya, Uganda, Zambia and Sudan!
Benefits of joining: great opportunity to stay fit with almost zero damage to joints, incredible team spirit, networking chance to meet other swimmers from other schools, priority places in events against other clubs/schools, swim camps with professional international swim coaches
All you need is a swim suit, towel, cap, goggles and the willingness to turn up to train!
Annual fees:
USD 120 – secondary swimmers (up to 5 training sessions per week)
USD 40 – primary swimmers (up to 4 training sessions per week)
For more information regarding the club, training sessions etc., please contact us on: uwcleopardsharks@gmail.com
PYP News
Thank you to everyone who attended the Meet the Teacher evening last Monday. It was nice to see so many of you. If you were unable to attend, your child should have brought home a handout covering the main discussion points of the event.
Please make sure that your child comes to school wearing a UWCEA T-shirt. These are available in the Development Office.
Well done to the P6 presenters and the P1 MCs in Friday’s primary gathering. The P6 children did a great job of showing us how to behave at school. Ms. Mboka’s class is discussing what it means to be kind. She would like all parents, not just those who have children in EC/P1, to send her photographs of your child being kind. The children can also submit drawings illustrating kindness. Please send your photos to mbokamwasongwe@uwcea.org.
The next primary gathering will be Friday, 16th September. P4/5 will present and P2/3 will MC. We hope to see many of you there.
Deborah Mills – PYP Coordinator
EC/P1 Class
The children have been busy making illustrations of what kindness looks like to them. They have gone through a couple shared by various students in PYP as well. These can be seen on our board. Please keep on sending pictures. We are also welcoming photos of kindness in action.
This coming week, we will be exploring the kinds of feelings one can feel in various communities, school, home and so on. We will talk about what these feelings can be, how they look like and what to do when we feel them.
Well done to our P1s who were MCs in this week’s primary gathering and to the youngest member of our class, Liam, who beat the drum to welcome the new school year this Monday. They have been risk-takers in action.
Mboka Mwasongwe
P2/3 Class
It’s hard to believe that it is only the 3rd week of school, it feels like we’ve been together as a class for ages! We had fun this week with role playing scenarios that involve making friendly choices like introducing yourself to new people or asking someone to play.
The big reminder for next week is about Swimming on Tuesday. The kids are very excited and perhaps a bit nervous. Please send in a separate bag with a swimsuit and a towel (goggles are optional). Students did well last week with the addition of clubs to the daily schedule though we could tell that everyone was a bit tired by the end of the week! I recommend that you begin sending in a hat for outdoor play.
Mon – Home Learning sent home
Tues – PE Swim
Thurs – PE and Library
Fr i- return Home Learning
Kacey Buckley
P4/5 Class
This week the children have investigated friction. They played with an airpuck (which glides a long way because it uses a fan to reduce friction) and tried picking up cubes of jelly covered in oil. They devised an investigation to see which surfaces caused the most friction when rubbed against the sole of a shoe. They used force meters to pull their shoes along different surfaces such as grass, concrete and wood. Next week we will graph our results. We will spend some time next week looking at water resistance and buoyancy and will start to learn about simple machines. In maths we learned about dividing 100 and 1000 into equal parts and used this knowledge to read scales on measuring jugs. Next week we will be partitioning numbers, adding and subtracting. We will carry on with spelling assessments next week and will focus on the capitalisation of proper nouns when writing. Please note that swimming class will start on Tuesday. Your child should bring a towel and a swimsuit. Goggle are optional.
Deborah Mills
P6 Class
“You can count on me, cause I can count on you”. P6 sang these words together in our first Gathering this morning. The words rang true because they have all supported each other this week. They were given the challenge of acting out, in small groups, how to behave and how not to behave around school. Each group produced two skits on topics including helping each other, trying our best and playing in the right spirit. Plus they sang the song together – good job P6. In class we’ve also focused on a shared reading exercise and some silent letter spelling; while in maths we have worked at place value. For our inquiry we also started looking at parts of a plant and what they do (scoring an impressive 92% class average!). Thanks to all parents who could attend the “Meet the Teacher” event on Monday- it was good to meet you all.
